As the mobile telecommunication industry grows, mobile subscribers are becoming increasingly more aware of their leverage in the market. They carefully compare service providers and call plans, and make educated choices before subscribing to a carrier and a service. Subscribers also continuously seek new and improved features to integrate into their mobile service such as enhanced chat, long distance service options, customized graphical user interfaces and the like.
Despite being informed consumers, mobile subscribers are often disadvantaged in the mobile market. For example, although a subscriber may be knowledgeable about their own calling plan subscription, subscribers are usually unaware of the cost per minute of a call to the calling destination. This puts a mobile subscriber at a disadvantage in making educated and economical calling choices.
Mobile subscribers would also welcome more long distance service options. A subscriber to a telecommunication carrier service typically needs a local access number to utilize the service. This usually involves selecting a number from a list of regional or area numbers, such as a preprinted list on a calling card, to find the access number closest to the subscriber's current location. The subscriber dials the local access number and is usually connected to a long distance service provider via a telephony network. Typically, the subscriber can then enter a target long distance telephone number, and the long distance service provider will route the call to a subscriber-specified number. The current approach has many disadvantages however, such as having to purchase a phone care and locating a local access number. In addition, a subscriber who accidentally places a call using a non-local access number may incur long distance charges.
It is common for a subscriber to experience a significant delay after powering on his mobile device before he is able to access updated contact information in his address book. This is because the mobile device must contact and retrieve an updated contact list from a server. As such, subscribers may desire to access his address book while the contact information is being updated.
To keep pace with the constant evolution of mobile telephony, mobile subscribers are treated to a variety of applications designed to optimize their mobile communication experience. For example, subscribers can access the Internet with the mobile device, send chat messages to their contacts and the like. Subscribers can glean relevant and up-to-date information about their contacts in their address books by viewing presence-statuses, away messages, sometimes referred to as status messages, mood messages or the like. However, it is common for a subscriber's status message to read the same regardless of which contact views it. As such, a subscriber cannot customize his status message based on the contact who is viewing it.